Films & Other Videos

Films with: Ramos, Mauricio A.

The world's most notorious slum is Rio de Janeiro's City of God, where combat photographers and police rarely go. Presents the true story of a young man who grew up on those streets and whose ambition as a photographer is our window in and his only way out.

Born to slaves in Northern Brazil and sold at the age of 7 by his mother for the price of a mule, João Francisco dos Santos battled all stereotypes on the mean streets of Lapa, Rio de Janeíro. Jailed for 27 of his 76 years, dos Santos was an explosive figure prone to excessive bouts of violence and moments of extreme tenderness the next. His world was filled with violence and raw desire, while desperate dreams spring from poverty and squalor. João Francisco dos Santos, also known as Madame Satã, is one of the most famous drag queen of 1930s.